Friday, June 24, 2005

Since I moved to New York two Januarys ago, I've not been listening to as much music for some reason. I don't listen to music at home, I'm not to going as many shows, and I'm not buying as many records.

Most recently it's because my turntable hasn't been working properly. Isolating the problem in the old turntable's cables, I bought a new turntable not long ago -- and much to my dismay. I'm just not satisfied with my new Audio Technica AT-PL50 belt drive turntable. Not only does it feel cheap by comparison, I don't like the tone arm's action, and the stylus appears to be shot -- straight out of the box.

So I've ordered an upgrade kit from LP Gear. Hopefully the different stylus -- and belt, which I'm not sure I'll use -- will make all the difference.

If not, I bought the wrong turntable -- and older is better than newer.

Thursday, June 23, 2005

I got my Odeo invitation today. Biz Stone's welcome message is a hilarious bit of brevity, and I've downloaded a couple of sample podcasts to taste tonight. The Synchr app is pretty sleek, and I like the Flickr-like mouse-over prompts on the Odeo site. Lookin' good, Robin Hood!

Wednesday, June 15, 2005

I'm in a new band, but not really. While the Anchormen are on a prolonged geographic hiatus, I've been tinkering around with several friends in New York. We call ourselves the Trylons after the Philip Johnson folly that's part of the Chrysler Building.

Roll call: Myself, Deb Klein of the Mary Reillys, Mike Faloon of the Kung Fu Monkeys and Egghead, and Mike Yannich of the Ergs and many other musical groups. We're on a bit of a hiatus ourselves, what with the Ergs going on tour and all.

I think the volume's a little low on the sound files, but check 'em out and let us know what you think. We've yet to play out or record properly, and if you're interested in booking a show or putting out the forthcoming "Knockout, Oklahoma" EP, don't be shy. The Trylons have arrived.

Monday, June 13, 2005

Saturday, June 18:Handstand Commandanniversary show in Somerville, Mass., featuring what might be the Operators' final performance, Scrapple, Asian Babe Alert, and Anchormen Karaoke. That means I'm not singing with the band; I'll be somewhere else, unfortunately.

Tuesday, June 07, 2005

I'm in a hotel room, a three-hour flight from home, and poking around online to kill time before hitting the hay. Imagine my reaction when I realized that iTunes had picked up not one, but two Shared Music options. Thanks to jblazinny, I'm sampling alien music.

Googling "jblazinny," it appears that my benefactor is a fellow named Jonathan Moy. With a defunct blog, a more active Xanga site, and a hand in Just Jared, Moy likes "Bball, tennis, reading, working out, chilling with friends, good and insightful conversations, swimming, hanging at the beach," and seems to be in New Orleans for a sales meeting. He's also active in church.

Fascinating. Thanks, Mr. Moy, for sharing your music. You get a punk point, while this Silver person -- who also shows up in the hotel network but isn't sharing -- gets a demerit. And props to the hotel for networking its guests.